“Let me be represented as one who trusts his senses, who thinks he knows the things he sees and feels, and entertains no doubts of their existence.” -- Bishop Berkeley

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Monday, January 31, 2005

Fuzzy Old England

My impression, from watching Monty Python, The Avengers, and other British TV shows from the 60s and 70s, was that England is a vague and somewhat out-of-focus place. I can now assure you that is not the case -- objects are every bit as sharp and focused here as in the US, and their colors are no more or lessed washed out than are the colors of American objects.

However, against the above, I must mark in the surprise-on-the-downside column the fact that England is chock full of very tiny steps -- oh, like an inch high or so. English architects seem to have precisely determined the height at which a step is just too small to be plainly visible, but plenty tall enough to trip you. A favorite place for these mini steps is in pubs, perhaps as one transitions from one room to another, but maybe just hanging out halfway across a single room.